Business Foundations
Learn to define your customer, test your idea with simple interviews and calculate the key numbers of a small business: profit, cash flow, contribution margin, break-even and price. You finish with a one-page business plan you can test and update.
Self-study course Self-study course: written lessons, videos and downloadable materials for independent learning. There is no supervision, assessment, individual feedback or tutoring. Self-check quizzes are evaluated automatically in your browser — we do not see your results.
All 8 lessons free
Before you start
- Basic arithmetic (adding, multiplying, percentages)
- Pen and paper or a calculator
- Optional: a business idea of your own
What you will be able to do
- Write a one-sentence customer value proposition for a specific customer segment
- Plan a five-question customer interview using open, non-leading questions
- Calculate revenue, profit and cash flow for one month and explain why they differ
- Sort business costs into fixed and variable costs and calculate the variable cost per unit
- Calculate contribution margin, break-even point and the effect of a discount on required sales
- Create a one-page business plan with a margin of safety and testable next steps
Lessons in this course
Who is your customer and what problem do you solve?
Write a clear customer value proposition that names a specific customer, their problem and why your offer helps.
Planning simple customer interviews
Plan a short, five-question customer interview with open, non-leading questions to test your value proposition.
Revenue vs profit vs cash flow
Tell revenue, profit and cash flow apart, and see why a profitable business can still run out of cash.
Fixed and variable costs
Sort a business's costs into fixed and variable costs and calculate the variable cost per unit.
Contribution margin per unit and ratio
Calculate the contribution margin per unit and as a ratio, and use it to see how sales cover fixed costs.
Break-even point in units and euros
Calculate how many units and how much revenue you need to cover all your costs.
Pricing basics: cost-plus, value-based and discounts
Compare cost-plus and value-based pricing and calculate how a discount affects your margin and required sales.
A one-page business plan and next steps
Combine your customer, offer and numbers into a one-page business plan and decide on your next steps.
Trading Foundations
Once you can read a business's numbers, the Trading course is a good next step to learn how markets work and how to manage risk with your money.
View course outline